1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to fabricating equipment for electric storage batteries having a plurality of cell units wherein the cell units are electrically interconnected one with another through apertures provided in the insulating partitions separating the cell units and, more particularly, to an electric welding apparatus for effecting the forming and fusion of opposed plate connectors using an extruding and melting technique.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of through-the-partition connections is well known in the electric storage battery art and, although the apparatii used in the past have been commercially acceptable, they lack the prolonged life and freedom from adjustment required for use in high volume production lines. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,046,062 issued to Matter on Sept. 6, 1977, there is disclosed an extruder-electrode unit which first extrudes portions of the partition separated lugs into an aperture in the partition and, when the extrusions contact one another, electric current is caused to flow through the extruder-electrode for fusing the contacting tips of the extrusions and softening the balance thereof until the partition aperture is filled and sealed. The problem herein is that the extruder-electrode is a unitary member made from a relatively soft electrically conducting material, such as cooper, which quickly wears and deforms and thus will not consistently extrude the required portions of the lugs into the apertures over prolonged periods of time. This, of course, necessitates frequent down time of the production line for changing or adjusting the extruder-electrode unit.